Healthy Families - Illinois

Healthy Families-Illinois (HFI) is part of Prevent Child Abuse America promoting positive parenting and child health development, while reducing the risk of child maltreatment. The program is designed to support new parents and help them to get their children off to healthy start by assessing, identifying and supporting overburdened families. In DuPage County the program works with the Family Case Management program to more intensive home-visiting services.

Healthy Families offers home-visiting services to eligible first time parents, the visits can begin prenatally or at the infant's birth. The program focuses on encouraging child development by providing child developmental information to new parents and by supporting parent-child interaction. CHS staff (Case Managers) visit homes of first time parents and expecting new parents. A Family Support Worker takes time to talk about what is going on in the life of the new parents and their baby, to develop an Individual Support Family Service Plan to meet the families' goals. Information on positive parenting skills, how to have healthy parent-child relationships, infant nutrition and basic care, home safety issues, engendering child development and child guidance is discussed and made available. Immunizations and medical care are also discussed.